Master confusing words with ease
Capitulate vs. Recapitulate
Capitulate
/kəˈpɪtʃəleɪt/Examples:
The rebels decided to capitulate and avoid further bloodshed.After hours of negotiation, they had no choice but to capitulate.Facing overwhelming odds, the fortress was forced to capitulate.
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Antonyms:
Recapitulate
/ˌriːkəˈpɪtjʊleɪt/Examples:
The professor asked her to recapitulate her thesis.He paused to recapitulate the argument succinctly.Please recapitulate the meeting's key points for us.
Synonyms:
Antonyms:
Ways to tell them apart:
- Recapitulate starts with re-, often used in English to mean again or back, which can help remind you that it refers to summarizing or going over something again.
- Capitulate contains the word capit, which sounds like captive; when you capitulate you sort of surrender or give in as if being taken captive.
- Recapitulate has an extra syllable compared to capitulate, which can serve as a clue that it's more about adding up or summarizing rather than giving up.
- Remember that recapitulate is often used in contexts like speeches, lectures, or summaries, where someone is reviewing prior information.
- Capitulation suggests surrender in a conflict or negotiation, usually involving an ending condition or agreement to stop resisting.
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